Bite me
by GrimSnuffles
Summary: Azalea Potter Black was back in Mystic Falls after a 7 year foray into the magical world. But she wasn't the only supernatural back in town. How will the Woman-Who-Conquered adjust to being part of a family again along with dealing with vampires, werewolves and originals without exposing her own witch status to the whole lot of them with the mystery of her new powers added in?
1. Prologue

**AN:**

 **DISCLAIMER: Neither Harry Potter nor the Vampire Diaries belong to me even if I do wish Damon did.**

 **This is my first time writing a fanfiction story so I hope that I am not too terrible at it. This story is something that I have wanted to read myself but I haven't found it yet. Here's to hoping that I give justice to the idea that's been swirling in my head and refusing to leave.**

 **As you'll figure out when you read below Azalea is actually fem Harry. As she has grown up in a stable household where she was loved there might be some character changes. Teddy will also be female as I just love the idea of a Willow (i.e. Teddy) metamorphing into a mini-Azalea.**

 **APOV**

As the plane landed in Mystic Falls I felt a barrage of emotions crash into me. There was excitement and anticipation as I would be seeing my siblings after a long time. Even though we've kept in contact through letters and cell phone whenever possible, it's not the same. Sadness as I won't ever be seeing my parents again. It was a blow to hear that they died on the same day that I survived the killing curse again.

 _Flashback_

 _I took a deep breath as I switched on my phone to see 98 missed calls from Elena, 70 missed calls from Jeremy and 41 missed calls from Aunt Jenna. I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion when I saw that there were none from my adopted parents Miranda and Grayson Gilbert._

 _Two months have passed since the Battle of Hogwarts as people have been calling it and it has been a blur of funerals, tears and alcohol. I have been cooped up in Grimmauld Place and today is the first time that I cleaned myself up. I knew that I owed it to my family at least to contact them and let them know that the war was finally over. I then called Elena._

" _Hello? Lea? Finally! Do you know how long we have been trying to reach you?"_

" _Hey Lena. I swear I'll explain everything to you. Can you put everyone on the speaker phone?"_

 _I tried to keep no secrets from my family. It was hard enough belonging to another world and being across the pond. Keeping things from them would just increase the distance between us in a way that will not be geographically. I heard some rustling from the other end._

" _Lea?"_

" _Hi Jer. Mama, Papa, you there?" After a few minutes of silence on the other end, Elena said, "They're not here. Tell us what happened that you couldn't call us weekly like you said you would. We thought you were dead! Do you even realize what you put us through?"_

" _I'm so sorry guys. I didn't mean to put you through that. It's just that… I'll start from what you last knew. You know that we were hunting objects that would help us kill Riddle right? There was one in Bellatrix Lestrange's vault in Gringotts so we broke into the bank and then escaped on the back of a dragon –"_

" _You what?!" Elena and Jeremy shouted._

" _I know, I know, it was a crazy idea but it worked." Then I proceeded to tell them about the diadem and the battle. I didn't tell them about our capture at Malfoy Manor because even though they knew it was bad they didn't need to know_ _ **how**_ _bad the whole war was. But there was one thing I couldn't miss no matter how much I wanted to as it was an important part and one that was affecting me in ways that I couldn't properly explain without them knowing the how._

" _How could you just give yourself up like that? Were you so selfish that you didn't even think about us before just giving yourself up to die?" Jeremy exclaimed._

" _It was the only way to finally end the war. I couldn't live knowing that there was a part of him in me and who knows that he wouldn't have ended up possessing me or something after I killed him. It was the only way I could see."_

" _You are never doing anything like that again. I have half a mind to put you on suicide watch" Elena said._

" _I don't have a death wish Lena. I'm pretty sure that I don't have any soul shards floating in my head so the chances of it happening again are zero." I said._

" _When did the – The Battle of Hogwarts, was it? – happen?" Jeremy asked._

" _The war ended on the 2_ _nd_ _of May. I know I should have called before today but I really wasn't in the right state of mind. I still am not actually but the funerals finally ended two days before, at least the ones that I wanted to go to, and I figured that it was high time that I called." I admitted to them._

" _Lea, there is something that you need to know." Elena said._

" _I am out of here." Jeremy muttered and I heard the sound of a door being banged shut._

" _What is it?" I asked, worried._

" _On May 2_ _nd_ _I was involved in a car crash. I survived it but our parents didn't."_

 _End Flashback_

I missed their funeral since I didn't even know they were dead when it happened. Being the Girl-Who-Lived-Again was an even more bitter pill to swallow when another set of my parents died while I survived again. Elena must be feeling like the Girl-Who-Lived herself. No matter what the masses thought, it was not a title to raise your champagne glass over.

I cleaned up my act as I knew that I needed to be there for them. The British Wizarding World think that I am going to be with family which I will be. Just not Petunia and Vernon Dursley.

Only Professor Dumbledore, Snape and Professor McGonagall were aware that I was adopted by the Gilberts when Aunt Petunia tried to send me off to an orphanage and Papa happened to be a visiting doctor and he took me in. Papa had been visiting Britain a lot during that time as he was helping a fledgling branch out so they passed me off as Elena's fraternal twin and told everyone that I had been too sickly and needed the medical attention in London. The three of them kept my disappearance quiet and got quite the surprise when they found out that I was in America. I consented to living with the Dursleys until I was seventeen with a few rare visits to Mystic Falls thrown in for the blood wards that thankfully held even after a decade and because it gave security to my family if nobody knew that they existed.

The Taxi that I had rented pulled up to 2104 Maple street. There was stinging in my eyes at the sight of my house after such a long time but I stubbornly held back my tears. I will not cry.

 **AN:**

 **Well there you go. Please review even if it is to criticize because even that helps me out.**


	2. Friday night bites

**AN:**

 **DISCLAIMER: Neither Harry Potter nor the Vampire Diaries belong to me even if I do wish Damon did.**

 **APOV**

I took a deep breath and rang the doorbell. The door opened after a few seconds and there stood my sister. I saw her last when we were both fourteen on the summer before my fourth year and the pictures didn't do her justice. So, we just stood there staring at each other for a whole minute.

"Surprise?" I asked, a bit unsure of my welcome.

"OH MY GOD, LEA!" With that said, she crashed into me for a huge hug which I immediately reciprocated. When we pulled back we both had tears running down our faces.

"I told myself I wouldn't cry and now look at me." I choked out, laughing gently.

"I can't believe you are here! How lo- "Elena got cut off by a high-pitched squealing before she got shoved to the side and I got blonde hair shoved into my mouth. I pulled back slightly to look at who I was sure was my childhood friend.

"Caroline?" I asked just to make sure.

"Yup! The one and only me! You look so pretty Lea! Though I've got to say those bags under those eyes are not doing you any good." Caroline said. Yeah that was her alright. Caroline was like the Lavender and Parvati of Mystic Falls. Well like they used to be. The nightmares were the cause of my eye bags but I wasn't going to tell her that.

"Caroline!" An attractive young woman with light brown skin, olive green eyes, a heart-shaped face, and black hair reprimanded.

"Bonnie Bennett." I grinned before going forward to hug her.

"Hey Lea. It's really nice to see you again." Bonnie said smiling after we pulled back from the hug.

There were two curious faces just behind them. I looked questioningly at Elena since they were new faces to me. Elena smiled and tugged the male with the broad forehead, forest green eyes and dark brown hair forward.

" Lea, this is my boyfriend Stefan Salvatore. Stefan, this is my twin sister Azalea." Elena introduced us to each other. My eyes widened a bit in surprise.

"Twin?" The other extremely handsome young man with striking, intense blue eyes contrasting against his dark hair asked, eyeing the both of us skeptically.

Yeah Elena with her olive complexion, brown eyes, and long, dark brown hair and I with my pale skin tone, long black hair, and bright emerald green eyes didn't even look related, let alone twins.

"Fraternal. And you are..?" I asked.

"Damon Salvatore. Stefan's brother." He came forward and kissed my hand. Looks like chivalry isn't dead after all.

"And my boyfriend." Caroline latched on to his arm.

Right. Off limits.

"I've heard quite a bit about you. It's nice to meet you." Stefan said politely.

"She would have heard about you too if she had actually called or at the very least picked up the phone." Elena glared at me.

"Lena baby I was very busy. Moving takes a lot of work you know." I smiled teasingly at her.

" You're moving back here? Oh I love you so much!" Elena squealed before giving me another hug.

"I love you too. Now help me move my bags upstairs to my room, will you?" I asked.

To the muggles it seemed like I only had two bags with me but the two luggage had an expansion charm on them so all my recently done shopping for muggle wear and my books for my seventh year which I was going to do independently this year and other knick knacks were in them with room for more.

"Let me help you." Stefan said coming forward.

"Oh no that's not needed. I'm not giving Elena anything too heavy and my room's probably a mess after all these years so it's probably best that she helps me." I widened my eyes at her to make her get the hint that there was a featherlight charm on the bags and I didn't need her boyfriend wondering about the lack of weight.

"Oh yeah I'll help you twin. We'll be right back." Elena said.

She then took one bag and I took the other and we both made our way into my bedroom. My bedroom was still the same as when I was 11 years old. I didn't see much point in redecorating it since I hadn't even live in it anymore when I could be spending that precious time with my family. Precious time that I didn't have with my mama and papa anymore. I sighed and looked around the purple wallpaper and the butterflies on it and decided that they had to go. It was the perfect bedroom for a preteen but I wasn't one anymore.

"So, did I interrupt a gathering?" I asked.

"You didn't interrupt anything. Actually, this is even more perfect. I hosted this dinner so that Bonnie could get to know Stefan, then Caroline and Damon came and now even you could get to know him." Elena said excitedly.

"Alright then you go back Ms. Hostess and I'll join you in a couple of minutes after I freshen up." I said.

I washed my face in the washroom and the looked critically at my appearance. My hair was still in the loose French braid I put them in and I didn't feel like changing my off shoulder grey sweater and black leggings for a dinner that was probably halfway done.

I went back downstairs and found them sitting in the living room scattered across the sofas. My red extra cushy arm chair was thankfully free so I sank back into it with a contented sigh. I looked up to see everyone looking at me with amused expressions.

"What? I like this chair." I said defensively.

"I know. You begged for our parents to order it because you liked a similar one in your boarding school." Elena said, smiling teasingly. I maturely poked my tongue out at her.

"So why were you twins separated? Did you get sent to boarding school because you were the wild child?" Damon smirked at me.

"I was not!" I faked being offended.

"Oh yeah? Then explain the letter that was sent right at the beginning of your second year that informed us that you drove to school instead of taking the train you were supposed to. She was twelve." Elena teased.

"I did not deliberately miss the train and you know it. It sounded like a good idea at the time." I shrugged sheepishly. Everybody else burst out laughing.

"That's what you say every time a letter came from your school." Elena laughingly said.

"Yeah, yeah. But honestly, I went because I wanted to learn something that was different from what we learn already. I mean the normal everyday subjects were there too" They weren't but I took the exams in the summers and learned independently in Hogwarts." but there was also Latin, Ancient Runes, Arithmancy and stuff like that." I explained.

"It sounds very interesting." Stefan smiled.

"Judging by that British accent I would guess it was on the other side of the pond." Damon said.

"And you would guess right. Scotland to be precise." I said.

"I cannot believe that Mr. Tanner let you on the team. Tyler must be seething. But good for you. Go for it." Caroline said.

"That's what I always tell him. You have to engage. You can't just sit there and wait for life to come to you. You have to go get it." Damon said.

"Yeah, Elena wasn't so lucky today. It's only because you missed summer camp. God, I don't know how you're ever going to learn the routines." Caroline said. Elena frowned.

"I'll work with her. She'll get it." Bonnie said.

"I guess we can put her in the back. Azalea, will you try out for cheerleading squad?" Caroline asked.

"Ah no." I shook my head. No way in hell.

"You know, just like your sister you don't seem like the cheerleader type, Elena." Damon mused.

"Oh, it's just 'cause her parents died. Yeah, I mean, she's just totally going through a blah phase. She used to be way more fun. And I say that with complete sensitivity." Caroline said after looking at my raised eyebrow and Bonnie's unimpressed face. Looks like Caroline still hadn't found the line between straightforward and insensitive.

"I'm sorry, Elena, Azalea. I know what it's like to lose both your parents. In fact, Stefan and I have watched almost every single person we've ever cared about die." Damon said.

"We don't need to get into that right now, Damon." Stefan warned.

"Oh, you know what, you're right, Stef. I'm sorry. The last thing I wanted to do was bring her up. Mmm." Damon said. I looked over at Elena and she mouthed ex-girlfriend to me.

"I'll clear up the table and have some food while at it. You guys continue." I said.

I loaded up the dishwasher with the utensils that were on the table and then sat on the counter to have the leftover pasta.

"One more." Damon said. I put my plate down and went over to him to get the glass but it slipped and then both of us caught it. I laughed in surprise and set it down in the dishwasher.

"Nice save" I said.

" I could say the same to you." Damon cocked an eyebrow at me. " I like you. You know how to laugh. And you" Damon turned around to look at Elena who came in after him "make Stefan smile, which is something I haven't seen in a very long time."

"Earlier, did you mean...Katherine?" Elena asked. Probably the ex-girlfriend. But whose?

"Mm-hmm." Damon hummed.

"How did she die?" Elena asked.

"In a fire. Tragic fire." Damon said.

"Recently?" Elena asked.

"It seems like it was yesterday" Damon said.

"What was she like?" Elena asked.

"She was beautiful. A lot like you in that department. She was also very complicated and selfish and at times not very kind, but very sexy and seductive." Damon said.

"So which one of you dated her first?" I asked. Elena smiled at me letting me know that we were on the same page.

"Nicely deduced. Ask Stefan. I'm sure his answer differs from mine. I'd quit cheerleading if I were you." Damon said to Elena.

"Why do you say that?" Elena asked.

"Oh, I saw you at practice. You looked miserable" Damon said.

"You saw that?" Elena asked.

"Was I wrong?" Damon asked.

"I used to love it. It was fun. Things are different this year. Everything that used to matter doesn't anymore." Elena said.

"So don't let it. Quit, move on. Problem solved. Ta-da." Damon said.

"Some things could matter again." Elena said.

"Maybe. But...seems a little unrealistic to me." Damon said.

"I agree with him" I said pointing my fork at Damon. He smirked at me.

"I'm sorry." Elena and I said together. Damon looked questioningly at both of us.

"About Katherine. You lost her, too" I said. Damon looked slightly surprised.

"Hey. Need some help?" Bonnie came in and asked.

"Sure, why not?" Damon said.

I dumped my plate into the dishwasher and hopped off the counter.

"I think it's time that I go up to bed. Jet lag and all. It was nice meeting you Damon" I said.

"It was my pleasure meeting you Azalea." Damon smirked.

 _He's taken. He's Caroline's boyfriend. Damn him for being so attractive._

I said my goodnights to everyone in the house and after changing the bedsheets and my clothes I collapsed into bed and fell asleep without any dreams.

I woke up to sunlight shining right on my face through the window whose curtains I obviously didn't pull last night. It was the first night that I slept through without any nightmares. Being bone deep tired probably played a part too. I hadn't been joking when I told Elena that it had been a very busy two month from dealing with the hysterical sheep that was the British wizarding community which was unwilling to let go of their scapegoat and messiah rolled into one to goblins for the break-in and my finances.

I was over seventeen so they couldn't hold me back and they had to concede that I deserved a break though many were still grumbling that I could have had it in Britain. Yeah right. Pointing my finger to Griphook's treachery and their harboring of an extremely dark artefact seemed to do the trick with the goblins. We had a deal that I wouldn't say anything to anyone to implicate them and they would let go of this offence. They weren't happy but when are they ever happy?

Ron and Hermione thankfully understood my need to spend time with family since they were doing the same though they were baffled as to why I would want to so that since they knew perfectly well how horrible the Dursleys were. I bullshitted something about needing familiar surroundings and they thankfully let it go.

I got up, went in Elena's room and jumped on her bed to wake her up. She groaned and turned over to look at the alarm clock on her side drawer.

"Why are you waking me up at 6:20 am? I don't need to get up for another hour." She moaned.

"Because I wanted you to be fully aware that your twin is back" I smirked down at her. She buried her head into her pillow. I jumped some more.

"I'm up! I'm up!" She exclaimed and sat up.

"Good. Now I'll go wake the others up and make some breakfast. See ya!"

I then entered Jeremy's bedroom and jumped up and down on his bed.

"Elena what are you doing?!" Jeremy shouted.

"Wrong twin" I smirked down at him.

"Lea?" Jeremy asked, confused then he pulled me down to lay with him.

"When did you get here?" Jeremy asked happily.

"Just came in last night. Met Elena's boyfriend and his brother too. I'm here to stay. At least until school gets over." I told him. "Now get up. I'm making breakfast."

"Yes! Finally we have someone in the house who can cook." Jeremy pumped the air with his fists.

"Haha. That does not mean that I'll be cooking every meal though. You will need to learn how to pull your weight too, Jerbear." I smirked at him.

"I did not miss that name" Jeremy groaned.

I went downstairs and cooked the full English breakfast as this was my first morning back home. Everyone came downstairs following the scent. I went over and hugged Aunt Jenna.

"Hi Aunt Jenna." I said.

"She doesn't seem surprised by your appearance. Did she already know that you were shifting back." Jeremy asked as we all settled down around the dining table.

Elena and Aunt Jenna smiled at each other before looking over at Jeremy. Hmm. I've got to find out what that is about.

"Yeah she knew. I wanted to surprise you both though." I said before shoving a forkful of bacon in my mouth.

"It was the best surprise ever." Elena beamed at me. I beamed back at her.

"So will you be attending the football match today?" Elena asked while she was loading up the dishwasher. I didn't have to clean up since I was the who cooked.

"I'm not sure. I was thinking of just staying back and unpacking today. I start school from Monday and there'll be many football games to come. But I have only seen you cheer once before so I'm a bit confused." I said while swinging my legs from my perch on the counter.

"I think I'm going to quit cheerleading." Elena said.

"Really?" I asked.

"Yeah. You and Damon were right. I shouldn't do something that doesn't matter anymore." Elena said.

"You'll find other things to do Elena. We all grow out of things but also into new things." I smiled at her.

"Caroline's going to be a nightmare when I tell her though." Elena said and we both laughed.

I went into my room and closed my window curtain first and put a sticking charm on it with my wand so that nobody could peek through. I opened up the luggage filled with my books and transfigured the book covers into something muggle appropriate. Then I started the protective charms over the book shelf that I'll be putting them in to self-clean the books, itself, divert the muggles away and other useful charms. After putting my Hogwarts books ranging from Year 1-Year 7 and also other additional books that I had picked up over my years in the wizarding world I opened up my other luggage that contained my clothes and photographs. I cast a freezing charm on the few photographs that I'll be putting around the room. I put up the wedding photograph of my mom and dad, James and Lily Potter which also included my godfather, Sirius Black as the Best Man on my bedside drawer alongside the family photograph taken of my mama, papa, Jer, Elena and me when I was 14.

I took a deep breath and lifted my palm towards my clothes in the bag. _Intent and will,_ I repeated to myself. Then I whispered "Wingardium Leviosa" and the clothes lifted from my bag one by one.

Wandless magic was an ability that came to me right after I died and came back to life. Just like when I needed to train my magic when I was 11, I also needed to train with wandless magic too. I was thankfully alone in Grimmauld place when I discovered my new ability. I was drunk on Firewhiskey and wanted the bottle to dance for my own amusement and it suddenly did. It scared the crap out of me when it first happened.

Another perk was that I no longer needed glasses. I wasn't sure why that happened but I am certainly happy about it.

The door suddenly burst open and I looked up to see Elena looking frazzled.

"The football game's over already?" I asked while Elena looked in wonder at the clothes floating to my closet.

"This is the first time that I am seeing you doing magic. It's incredible." Elena breathed. I smiled at her.

"It really is. I was just practicing my wandless magic. One of the perks that came after dying." I told her.

"Don't call them perks! It required you to die." Elena glared at me.

"Alright, alright. What happened?" I changed the subject.

"Mr. Tanner, our History teached died during the football match." Elena told me.

"Oh no, how?" I asked, concerned.

"Animal attack." Elena said.

"An animal came that far into the school?" I asked incredulously.

"It seems so." Elena said, a bit distracted.

"What else happened?" I asked her.

"Damon Salvatore tried to kiss me." Elena told me.

"Isn't he with Caroline?" I asked, disgusted. I ignored the twinge in my stomach.

"Yeah he is. I slapped him and told him that I would not be another Katherine." Elena said with a determined look on her face.

"Good job." I grinned at her.

 **AN:**

 **The ripple effects of Azalea's presence in TVD will be seen further into the story. The girl's just arrived but it's already making small differences. Hope you liked this chapter. It's quite a bit longer than the last one.**


	3. Family ties

**Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respectable owners. The original characters, ideas and plot are the property of the author. The author is not associated with the owners, creators or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.**

 **A/N: I'm so sorry for the long wait between the chapters. All I can offer is that I have been in the middle of a career change and location change and well, life in general. I'm still caught up in it so I can't promise regular updates but I will definitely try not to have such a large gap again.**

 **APOV:**

 _I could feel intense heat on all sides. I realized that my eyes were closed and opened them to see myself surrounded by a ring of fire. I flicked my wrist but there was no wand in my hand after the action. I looked at my arm and felt a part of me chill when I saw no wand holster. Aguamenti was a sixth-year charm but I still tried to cast it wandlessly to no avail._

" _It's all nice and well for you that you can do wandless magic now! What about the rest of us?" sneered Colin as he appeared right in front of me._

" _I didn't want them! I broke the wand and threw the stone in the forest but they keep on coming back no matter what I do." I tried to plead my case._

" _Yes, it is very convenient to have such a noble excuse, isn't it girl-who-lived?" said Colin as he backed into the fire._

" _No! Stop! You'll die!" I tried to reach out for him but I was frozen in my spot._

" _I'm already dead. All because you were too slow and stupid."_

 _I watched in horror as he turned into ashes. Suddenly something grabbed me from behind and all I got was a glimpse of gold and black before something ripped into my neck._

I sat upright in my bed with sweat drenching my tank top. This has been such a common occurrence now that I merely looked at the time which was surprisingly only 5 am and went straight for a shower. After my morning routine I grabbed my 7th year Potions textbook and went downstairs to study.

My head shot up when I heard footsteps coming downstairs.

"Good morning, Aunt Jenna." I greeted her as she emerged into the living room.

"Good morning, Azalea. You're up early." She said in surprise.

"I've turned into a bit of an early bird. You know, boarding schools." I waved my hand to wave the issue away, not wanting her to know about the nightmares.

"We should have sent your siblings to a boarding school too. Look at you, studying in the early hours of the morning while they… especially Jeremy." Jenna muttered as she settled down next to me on the couch. "What are you studying anyway?"

"Oh, um just some chemistry." I then hurriedly got up and attempted to distract her from the subject by asking, "Do want some breakfast? I'm starving!"

"I should make _you_ breakfast. I'm the legal guardian" Jenna tried to rise but I made her sit down again.

"Don't worry about it Aunt Jenna. It's no hardship and I'm better at it anyway." I teased her.

Jenna huffed but settled down and switched the TV on while I started on the pancake batter. By the time I made four stacks of pancakes and coffee Elena had come down.

"To repeat, the animal terrorizing Mystic Falls has been caught." Said the news reporter as I sat on the dining table with a cup of coffee while Jenna stood up agitatedly and walked to a chair and leaned on it. I gave her a questioning look which she probably didn't see in her heated mutters of "Scum ball. Scum bucket."

"Who are you talking to?" Elena asked as she stood with her own cup of coffee beside Jenna.

"Him!" Jenna snapped as she pointed a finger at the TV.

"The news guy?" Elena and I both said and then grinned at each other. It was good to know that our twin speech was still intact. It would have been inappropriate to smile crazily together with a topic such as the death of an ex-girlfriend yesterday.

"Also known as Logan "Scum" Fell. Did your mom ever tell you why I moved away from Mystic Falls?" Our attention snapped back to Jenna.

"Oh, no way. You and him? He's cute." Elena said as she took another look at the screen.

"He is not cute. There's nothing cute about him." Jenna fumed as she shut off the television.

"Get off and go sit on a chair" Elena shoved at me with one hand before she put a box on my vacated spot on the table.

"Lenaaa" I whined as I shifted to a chair.

"What are you doing with that?" Jenna came over and peered at the box.

"I went yesterday and got it from the safe deposit box. Mom had told Mrs. Lockwood she would loan it to the founder's council for their heritage display." Elena said, as she opened it.

"Ugh, there is a Founder's party coming up?" I scrunched up my nose at that.

"Yes, in fact it's today. You're going." Before I could protest more than a "But-" Elena stream rolled over me, "The last time you attended was the Potluck when you were fourteen. There is a heritage display and you know Mom would have wanted you to go."

I swallowed down the lump in my throat. Mama had always despaired at the many get togethers that I missed due to Hogwarts. She had always been big on community and history. She wanted us, as her daughters, to be a part of it too.

Jenna laid a hand on my shoulder in comfort. She picked up a ring and asked in a fake casual voice "Is that grandma Beth's wedding ring?"

"Originally it was great-great-grandma Mary's wedding ring." I smiled fondly as I remembered liking the emerald stone encased in the ring since it matched my eyes.

Jeremy came downstairs and took the pocket watch Elena was cleaning from her hand. "How much do you think this stuff is worth? You know, like on eBay?"

"You're not gonna find out." Elena fired up at once.

"That stuff is mom and dad's. You can't just give it away." Jeremy insisted.

"As if we would give the stupid Founder's Council our parents' stuff, Jerbear. This is ours and it's not going to anyone. We're just loaning it, right Elena?" I placated him and Elena nodded. Jeremy grunted and turned back around and I called out, "Pancakes on the counter!" and he then proceeded to take a plate and go back up.

The doorbell rang and I instantly said, "Not me." Elena rolled her eyes and went to open the door. It was Stefan, which turned Elena into a giggling version of herself as she stood up on her tip toes to kiss him.

"Eww! Get a room, sister and aunt right here." I pointed to Jenna and myself.

I looked on incredulously as they went up and did just that and Jenna didn't say a word to the contrary. Mama, papa and Molly Weasley would have definitely had some words for them. The thought of my parents threatened to pull my mood down.

"Is it just me or was Jeremy a bit moody this morning?" I asked Jenna to distract myself.

"He has not been handling things well since… I took up your guardianship. He's actually been better with you here." Jenna explained.

"Oh." Well there went my distraction. "I should get back to my studying."

* * *

This time when the doorbell rang I could not foster opening it on anyone else since no one was downstairs so I did it myself.

"Azalea? Hey, when did you decide to pay us commoners a visit?" Tyler asked as he hugged me.

"You? A commoner? Who are you trying to kid?" I smirked at him, "I'm back for at least the next two years to finish up school here. What are you doing here?"

"That's great! I'm here for my mom. I was supposed to pick up a box of stuff." Tyler explained.

"Oh, right. Hold on a minute." I turned around but Elena was already coming down with the box with Jeremy on her heels.

"No need to hold on. I'm right here. Please be careful." Elena handed Tyler the box.

"Yeah, be careful with it, dick." Jeremy spat venomously.

"Jeremy!" I gasped.

"Hey! Not now, okay, guys? Please?" Elena said to both of them.

"I'm fine. He's just being a punk." Tyler sneered.

"I got your punk." Jeremy retorted.

"Ok, why don't we cool this down? Tyler, thank you for coming to get the box and we'll meet you and your parents at the party." I tried to end this conversation which got heated out of nowhere.

"Hey. Would it make a difference if I told you I actually like Vicki?" Tyler ignored me and asked Jeremy.

"Not even if you meant it." Jeremy then slammed the door.

"Wait, that was all over Vicki? Vicki Donovan, Matt's sister?" I clarified.

"Yes, Jeremy and Tyler have been getting into fights over her all summer." Elena confirmed.

"But wasn't she a druggie? Did she go into rehab?" I asked.

"Oh no. Our brother instead decided to join her in her lifestyle." Elena looked unimpressed which was a feeling that also coursed through me.

"I don't want to hear it." Jeremy snapped and stormed back upstairs.

Bonnie came over in the evening to get ready with us for the Founder's party. Currently she was frowning down at the two nail polishes in her hands. "Delicate flower vs. naughty vixen?"

"Tough call. Can we mix them?" Elena giggled as she sat down on the bed beside us while I picked up the copper nail paint to start applying it on my nails.

"Look at you, getting all pretty for your date. You seem happy-ish." Bonnie said with a smile to Elena.

"I am...ish. Tonight's going to be a good night. But don't let that stop you from telling me whatever it is you wanted to tell me as soon as you walked in the door." Elena shot her an impish smile back.

"What if I tell you in the morning? I don't want to ruin the night." Bonnie sighed.

"Bonnie, out with it." Elena said sternly.

"Okay, but it has to go in the vault, because Caroline will kill me if it gets back to Damon that she squealed. Apparently Stefan has a very interesting back story." Bonnie said.

"Is it? Do tell." I prompted her as I leaned towards her. I wasn't going to pass on knowing more about my sister's boyfriend.

"Do you know what happened with his ex-girlfriend Katherine?" Bonnie quizzed us.

"Stefan and his brother both dated her, right?" I looked at Elena.

Elena nodded. "Which is why they have issues."

"Yeah, they both dated her, only she chose Damon. And that drove Stefan mad, so he did horrible things to try and break them up. He manipulated Katherine. He filled her head with all these lies until finally it worked, and she turned against Damon." I pursed my lips at that apparent drama between the brothers.

"That sounds like one person's side of the story, meaning Damon's." Elena pointed out.

I nodded, "If you heard this from Caroline, then this came from Damon. Without knowing Stefan's side of the story, we can't pass judgement on either of them." Either Stefan really did do this, and Damon is now taking revenge by coming onto Elena or Damon just has a habit of doing this with his brother's relationships.

"I just wanted you to know." Bonnie shrugged.

"Anyway, his past relationships are none of my business." Elena added.

"Unless he's a calculating, manipulative liar. That is your business." Bonnie replied.

"Stefan is none of those things." Elena said defensively.

"Yeah? How do you know?" Bonnie countered.

Looking at Elena's disturbed face, I soothed her "Look, this is getting us nowhere. At the end of the day, this is like rumors. The only thing you can do Elena is be cautious just like you should be with any other person that you meet. Ok?"

Elena nodded with a tiny smile of gratefulness on her face.

"Good. Now let's start putting make up." I grimaced which caused Bonnie and Elena to start laughing at me.

When we were just about done putting make up on – thank god! – Elena's phone rang which she answered as I checked over if my scar was still covered up. I always covered my lightning bolt scar with foundation and concealer in the muggle world as it was a huge sign to those who knew what to look for that I was the famous Azalea Potter and I didn't need anyone recognizing me in Mystic Falls.

"Hello? Hi, Mrs. Lockwood." Elena began frowning. "What do you mean? It is? Are you sure? 'Cause I saw it. Let me check. Mm-hmm. I will find it and bring it. Ok. Bye." She then stormed off in a spectacular fashion.

"What's wrong?" Bonnie wondered.

"No idea. Excuse me for a few minutes, Bonnie. I'll go find out." I started walking out of the room and heard a faint "Yeah, sure."

"Mrs. Lockwood just called me, freaking out. It was on the list, Jeremy. And she can't find it, and she thinks she's the one who lost it." The fury was palpable in Elena's voice.

"Maybe she did. Maybe Tyler took it." Jeremy attempted to shift the blame just as I walked into his room.

"Don't even play that card. Jeremy, you took it. If I go online, am I going to find it on eBay? Is that how you pay for your pot?" Elena accused him.

"Woah, woah let's just take a deep breath right now, ok?" I tried to calm the situation down. If this was improvement according to Aunt Jenna then things must have been really bad.

"No, screw you." Jeremy got up and took out a pocket watch from what must have been a hiding spot in the shelf. "I would never sell this, ok?"

"Then why did you -?" Elena stressed each word out, but I cut her off with a warning look before she could complete her scathing jab. "Jerbear, we know you wouldn't ever sell our parents' stuff. Elena's just frustrated because we don't understand why you took it. Just tell us why."

"Because it's supposed to be mine. Dad said it goes to the firstborn son. His father gave it to him, and now what?" Jeremy's voice wobbled slightly before he shoved the pocket watch into Elena's hand.

"And he was going to give it to you." Elena and I said softly.

"Yeah." Jeremy muttered.

"Look, Jeremy, it's still yours, okay? Mom promised Mrs. Lockwood. What do you want me to do?" Elena said with a helpless look.

"Just take it and get out." Jeremy said in a defeated tone.

"Or," I said as I took the pocket watch back from Elena, "We can do this instead." I went and stood in front of Jeremy. "Jeremy Gilbert, this heirloom," I held it up, "has been passed down to the descendants of the Gilbert family from our forefathers. Tradition dictates that you are the next in line to inherit this. Treasure and protect it and when the time comes, pass it down to your own progeny."

Tears gleamed in his chocolate brown orbs as he accepted the pocket watch from me. I hugged him, and Elena also joined in embracing us.

"Mrs. Lockwood must have overlooked the pocket watch because I definitely remember putting it." Elena stated when we pulled back from each other.

"Poor Mrs. Lockwood." I said in mock sympathy before we all burst out laughing. This was why I was needed here. They were the only family that I had left, and I was going to take care of it.

I decided to keep my hair open in my natural curls after taming it with some hair spray. Then I donned on my form-fitting chocolate brown pencil dress that came till just below my knees and the copper chunky heels.

I fingered the watch that once belonged to Fabian Prewett and thought of my invisibility cloak. I understood all too well how precious heirlooms were.

* * *

"Azalea! You look absolutely gorgeous." Mrs. Lockwood gushed.

"Thank you, Mrs. Lockwood. You look really beautiful yourself." I greeted her.

"Thank you, honey. How long are you staying this time?" She enquired.

"The plan is to finish out my schooling in Mystic Falls." I informed her.

"Oh, that's wonderful news! Your parents would have been happy to see you back in your hometown." Mrs. Lockwood said.

"Yeah." I gave her a fake smile.

"Well, come on in. Your sister is already here." Mrs. Lockwood waved her hand inwards.

I immediately took a champagne glass from one of the waiters. I was going to need it if the continual mention of my parents continued. I had stayed back to play a few rounds of video game with Jeremy which had the wonderful effects of bonding with him and giving me an excuse to come late to this party if Elena or Aunt Jenna asked.

Somebody suddenly breathed down my neck when I was looking over the table to see what to eat. "Aren't you a bit young to be drinking?"

I turned around to see Damon Salvatore looming over me. I put my hand on his chest to push him away, but he just held onto my hand and stayed put. I raised my eyebrow in a silent question but otherwise said, "Somehow you didn't strike me as the type to care about these things. Would you believe me if I said that this would be legal in London?"

I wasn't even lying since I was actually 18 even though my muggle records indicate 17 due to the adoption.

"Nope, it would still be illegal because you are drinking champagne. But I'll let it go if you dance with me." Damon smirked as he turned my hand in his hold.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "You think I am going to dance with you after you tried to kiss my sister yesterday even though the both of you are in your own relationships?"

"I already explained myself to Elena. You both can gossip all about it later at home in your sexy pjs. Caroline is completely fine with me dancing with other people. She herself danced with Stefan a while ago." Damon said with an innocent look on his face that I didn't believe for a second.

I hesitated but finally acquiesced when he coaxed me with a, "C'mon! One dance isn't going to kill you."

He leads me onto the dance floor and twirled me into position. "You look stunning, if it isn't obvious."

I smile up at him as we start to sway together, "Thank you."

"So, the room is buzzing with the news that Azalea Gilbert is back. How does it feel to be the center of everyone's attention?" Damon asked.

"An experience I'll pass." I quipped.

Damon scrunched his eyebrows at that. "Really? Most people are thrilled usually."

"Well I'm not most people. Anyway, I had enough of that in my last school." I muttered. I just wanted to live a peaceful normal life.

"Ah, so you were Miss Popular and cheerleader I presume. Just like your twin in that manner then?" Damon asked.

I laughed quietly. "Something along those lines." It was a very loose interpretation but explaining how the wizarding world ping ponged in their opinions of me every alternate year was not what I wanted to discuss at the moment. "What about you? How were you in school?"

"The absolute bane of my teachers." Damon proudly told me which made me laugh.

"Yeah? And what did you end doing after school?" I asked.

"Traveling." Damon then twirled me, and we ended up being closer than before when he pulled me back.

"What's your favorite place then?" I probed, looking up at him.

"Hmm. Italy. We used to live there at one point. My mother really loved it there." There was a soft look in his face and it was the first time since I had met him that he didn't have a mask of smugness.

"You'll have to tell me her favorite spots then." I beamed at him.

He never got to tell me those spots because Elena was suddenly in front of me after having shoved him away.

"There is something seriously wrong with you. You stay away from Caroline or I will go straight to her mother, the sheriff. You got it? Stay away from her. Oh, and don't come near my sister again." With that done, Elena grabbed my wrist and marched away from him.

"Elena! What was that?" But my sister ignored me and continued dragging me outside. I tugged my wrist and folded my hands on my chest. "No, explain first what that was about."

"Just come with me. I need to talk to Stefan about it too."

"Fine, let's go." I gave her a break as I regarded her frazzled appearance and she looked relieved for it.

Elena and I walked up to Stefan and she spoke in an overwrought voice, "I'm sorry. I take it all back. You're completely right about Damon."

Stefan frowned in concern. "What did he do?"

"There are bruises all over Caroline's body. Bite marks, and he has her all confused and messed up in the head." Elena paused and then noted, "You don't look surprised."

"Damon's abusing her?" I said in a hushed tone, horrified.

"Um...I'm handling it." Stefan shifted where he was standing nervously.

"Handling it? Stefan, you should be having him arrested." Elena yelled at him.

"Elena, please. I... I don't expect you to understand." Stefan replied with a conflicted expression.

I huffed, "You're right, she doesn't understand and neither do I, Stefan. How can the abuse of our friend not even be a blip in your radar?" I then turned to look at Elena. "I'm going to look for her."

Who knows what Damon could have done to Caroline after Elena confronted him, was the thought going through my mind as I headed back to the Lockwood Manor. Elena joined me after a few minutes as she jogged to catch up.

"Where's Stefan?" I asked as we speed walked through the front door.

Elena shrugged and answered crisply, "I don't know, he just went off in the middle of the conversation. Whatever, I don't want to talk about him right now."

I didn't bother prodding her further. We searched the whole mansion but there was no sign of Caroline anywhere. We went back outside to the lawn which is where we found a disheveled Caroline sitting on the grass.

"Caroline? There you are. We've been looking everywhere for you. Are you okay?" Elena asked as I helped her back to her feet.

"Yeah. I'm fine" Caroline answered in an unconvincing tone.

"Caroline, what happened?" I asked gently.

"I'm fine." Caroline insisted shakily.

"No. You're shaking. Caroline—What—" Caroline cut Elena off with a shouted, "I'm fine!"

I sighed and shared a look with Elena. We just tugged her into our arms while Elena tried to sooth her. "Caroline, come here, come here."

Caroline started sobbing heavily at that. I stroked her hair and started muttering, "Shh." I pulled back slightly when my hand felt wet. I gasped in shock at what greeted me on her neck when I pushed her hair to the side. Elena gave me a questioning look, but I shook my head at her and mouthed "later."

"C'mon Caroline, we'll drop you off." I started pulling her to the parking lot.

It was only after we supported her to her bed, dressed her wounds and were back in Elena's car that I let go of the breath that I felt like I had been holding since we found Caroline.

I looked at Elena in the driver's seat and saw her regarding me warily. "What is it?"

"That's no ordinary bite mark Elena. Those are vampire bites. Which means that Damon is a vampire." I whispered.

"Does that mean Stefan…?" Elena trailed off and I shook my head. "I don't know for sure Elena but until we do, I want you to stay away from them."

"Actually, I think he is a vampire too. During the football game his hand got slashed by glass, but it healed, and he tried to convince me that it wasn't his blood and that it didn't happen." Elena said quietly.

"We'll figure it out ok? Come here." I pulled her into a hug and squeezed her tighter when my shoulder started to get wet.

I meant it. I will figure out a way to keep what was left of my family safe.

 **A/N: Please review. Reviews are like chocolate and I absolutely love chocolate.**


End file.
